Public Records Act

The North Carolina Auditor’s office is accused of not complying with public records laws by a left-leaning nonprofit, American Oversight, regarding communications from former employee Dallas Woodhouse. Woodhouse, who worked as an elections liaison, has been involved in controversial text exchanges with Republican county officials, and the Auditor’s office claims it no longer has access to his personal devices for record retrieval.

Assemblymember Blanca Pacheco's Assembly Bill 1821 proposes allowing government agencies to delay responses to public records requests and charge higher fees for 'commercial use' searches, drawing criticism from transparency advocates who argue it could make California the most secretive state. Pacheco claims the bill aims to prevent AI-driven and malicious requests from overwhelming local governments, but opponents say it creates barriers to accountability and violates public access rights.

Assemblymember Blanca Pacheco's proposed Assembly Bill 1821 would allow public agencies to delay records requests deemed 'improperly' filed, charge up to $88 hourly for commercial-use records, and sue individuals for 'malicious' requests. Critics argue the bill would undermine California's open records act and government transparency, with some calling it a 'virtual horror show of governmental non-transparency.'